The Flying Naked Scotsman
On Friday, a few thousand Scots descended upon London to watch the much anticipated Euros game, Scotland vs England. This is the first major tournament Scotland have played in for 23 years. The Scots are definite underdogs in the Euros, but that does not dampen their spirit, as Adidas said in their advertisement this year, ‘It’s coming hame.’
However due to Covid restrictions there were no designated fan zones, so the thousands of Scots ran amok on the streets of London, gathering in crowds, punching signs and chugging beers.
The police were granted more power for 48 hours, so they could disperse the crowd with ease. These unruly, excited fans gathered in Leicester Square and began to fill the grade 2 listed, Shakespeare fountain with washing up liquid and frolicked around in the bubbles. Northerners have the old sink wash from time to time, so a fountain was a definite upgrade.
The Scots were bath ready, as most were wondering the streets semi-nude, their pallid tums resting upon the top of their kilts. London became the Benidorm of the UK filled with half naked Northerners trying to get a tan.
One incredibly patriotic fan was filmed doing the worm on the tube, due to tradition he had not worn any underwear beneath his kilt, so his scotch eggs were seen bouncing up and down on the tube floor. Later on, the same man decided to have a wee dip in Hyde Park, throwing his kilt to the floor and exposing his bagpipes. He was led away into police custody.
Was this odd weekend of football hooliganism a reaction against the past year of endless lockdowns? Were the Scots just desperate to feel like they were back in 2019? It’s not just the fans who feel like this, all of the advertisements for the Euros feel like a throw back to before the virus.
After Brexit, the relationship between the UK and Europe has been fractured, advertising companies have been working hard to mend this and bring back the spirit of the Euros. Through doing so they have ignored Coronavirus that has been effecting the world for over a year now.
The BBC decided to show fans and teams all crowded together awaiting the tournament, no social distancing or a mask insight. When it comes to football it seems that the Euros mark the end of coronavirus.
These large companies will pay the price for this kind of advertising. With the new strain of coronavirus emerging, broadcasting to fans that everything is seemingly back to normal will lead to further spreading of the virus and again the stadiums close.
But when it comes to the arts everything is still on hold, you are not even allowed to stand and dance in bars anymore. But football seemingly is immune to corona, with thousands of fans gathering and drinking on the street together.
